Express-Scripts plans $56 million expansion and 1,500 new jobs over five years

St. Louis is headed to the top ten in college attainment.

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A pillar of our economic development strategy is that, “We will win on today’s regional strengths in focused economic clusters. Explore in detail the four sectors that we believe will shape our region’s future.

“The Banker” … from Central Park West to Washington Avenue

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We’ve condensed a detailed three-year plan into a single paragraph we call our Strategy Statement. It’s all about priorities and direction.

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Our research team has probably answered almost any question that could be asked regarding the St. Louis region. If you can't find it in our Regional Data section, please send a note to Tim Alexander at talexander@stlregionalchamber.com.

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Inner City Capital Connections Program has come to St. Louis. To date, this program has helped 837 different businesses raise over $1.32 billion in capital and create over 11,000 jobs in the inner city. Read more about the program on our blog.

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We believe nothing is more important in St. Louis than achieving Top 10 status in college attainment among the nation's largest metros. Visit www.topteneducation.org to follow our progress.

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If your company represents growth potential for the region -- or you know of other companies that do -- we'd be pleased to help however we can. Please contact Jim Alexander at jalexander@stlregionalchamber.com

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St. Louis is home to 16 Fortune 1000 companies and some of the largest private firms in the U.S.; but don't overlook the ever increasing number of high growth small-to-medium enterprises and startups. Click here for a quick summary.

St. Louis Press Pass

by
Gary Broome
| Jul 24, 2015

Good policing is good for business (The St. Louis American, 7/23/15)

Last week, Governor Nixon signed Senate Bill 5 into law. State Senator Eric Schmitt worked with leaders on both sides of the aisle to craft a law that ensures our municipal courts can once again be seen as centers of justice rather than sources of revenue. Now, we must turn our attention to new solutions in policing as we work together to restore trust in our justice system. >> CLICK FOR MORE

U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., says she’s a strong supporter of a multi-year federal highway bill, and she’s willing to go along with House Speaker John Boehner’s call to mesh any long-term transportation package with a broader look at federal tax policy. McCaskill told St. Louis business leaders Friday that such a measure could provide state officials with more flexibility to direct the federal money to needed transportation projects.>> CLICK FOR MORE

Jobs as hair salon manager, magician’s assistant and even animator for a Comedy Central program failed to satisfy artist Kristen Kempton’s urge to create. When she began designing and making women’s clothing, one silk-screened tunic and dress at a time, she found the artistic release she craved. Kempton launched her one-woman company, named it Fink (as in “Fashion + Ink”), and began selling her garments, mostly on the Etsy online marketplace.>> CLICK FOR MORE

The Missouri Department of Economic Development on Monday unveiled ProPharma Group’s plan to establish a new medical information contact center in Maryland Heights. The Kansas-based company, which provides compliance services to the medical device, biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries, is new to Missouri. The center will open with 10 employees and expects to have 36 employees within several years, according to the Department of Economic Development. The staff will include nurses, pharmacists and other health care professionals. >> CLICK FOR MORE

Angel Vendors: How Big Businesses In St. Louis Are Encouraging Entrepreneurship -- Inside And Outside Of Their Own Companies (Forbes, 7/24/15)

A little over a decade ago, Matthew Porter was tossing and turning in bed as he mulled over quitting his job to launch a web services firm with a former co-worker. Tired of his tortured deliberations, Porter’s eight-month pregnant wife, Courtney, turned to him and said, “You don’t get to tell our kids to follow their dreams if you don’t follow yours. That makes you a hypocrite.” >> CLICK FOR MORE

Forbes ranks St. Louis 7th most affordable large city (KMOV, 7/21/15)

St. Louis has been named one of the most affordable large cities to live in, according to Forbes magazine.
Forbes ranked St. Louis the seventh most affordable city with a population of 600,000 or more. >> CLICK FOR MORE

St. Louis hospital among U.S. News’ ‘best’ (St. Louis Business Journal, 7/21/15)

Barnes-Jewish Hospital has been named to the US News Best Hospitals Honor Roll for the 23rd consecutive year. The Honor Roll features 17 Best Hospitals that scored near the top in at least six specialties. >> CLICK FOR MORE

Venture capitalists poured $35.9 million into Missouri companies in the second quarter this year, up from just $8.6 million invested last quarter but down from $78.4 million invested in Missouri companies during the second quarter of 2014, when cloud-based technologies developer Lumeris raised$71 million.That’s according to the MoneyTree Report from Pricewaterhouse Coopers and the National Venture Capital Association. The money was raised via six deals, most notably a pair of financings for St. Louis companies Clearent, which raised $25 million during the quarter, and Vasculox, which raised $7.3 million.>> CLICK FOR MORE

Ferguson Commission banks on enthusiasm for implementation as work winds down (St. Louis Public Radio, 7/20/15)

After months of deliberation and debate, the Ferguson Commission produced roughly 200 initial recommendations – an ambitious output for an entity charged with the job of issuing a report. But Ferguson Commission managing director Bethany Johnson-Javois said the commission’s “calls to action” are purposefully aspirational. >> CLICK FOR MORE

Save Our Sons' program providing job training in North County (KMOV, 7/23/15)

A young St. Louis County man said a choice he made four months ago changed the course of his life. William Ruffin, 21, grew up with Michael Brown and said his death led to a new way to look at life. The Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis started the Save Our Sons program in response to the unrest in Ferguson and Ruffin took advantage of the resources>> CLICK FOR MORE

Ferguson hires black interim police chief (CNN, 7/22/15))

Andre Anderson says his main task will be to restore trust between Ferguson's predominantly black populace and the Missouri city's mostly white police force. Anderson, the city's first African-American head of police, believes he's the right man for the job.>> CLICK FOR MORE

Uber vows to create 2,000 new, local driver jobs if the ride service is allowed to operate in St. Louis City and County. Uber says it is partnering with the NAACP and the ‘Ferguson 1000′ organization to recruit UberX drivers, who make their own schedules and decide when they want to work. The company says drivers could make as much as $15 to $20 an hour. >> CLICK FOR MORE

The Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Science and Engineering Research Challenge is the recipient of a $20,000 grant from Monsanto Fund. The regional competition has been hosted on the SIUE campus since 1984. It provides local fifth to 12th graders an opportunity to showcase their skills and demonstrate enthusiasm in the areas of science, technology, engineering and math.>> CLICK FOR MORE

McKendree University makes ‘Great College to Work For’ Honor Roll (Illinois Business Journal, 7/15)

McKendree University has made The Chronicle of Higher Education's “Great College to Work For” Honor Roll in seven categories. McKendree is one of 42 colleges and universities on the 2015 Honor Roll -- and the only one of those from Illinois. In all, 86 institutions — 62 four-year and 24 two-year— achieved “Great College to Work For” recognition. >> CLICK FOR MORE

Home furnishings retailer Ikea has completed the installation of solar panels atop its St. Louis store, slated to open Sept. 30. Once operational, the rooftop solar installation will be the largest in the state of Missouri, officials said Tuesday. The store’s 259,000-square-foot solar array comprises a 1.28-megawatt system, built with 4,085 panels. It will produce 1.78 million killowatt hours of electricity a year for the store.>> CLICK FOR MORE

Lambert-St. Louis International Airport saw its passenger traffic uptick slightly in the second quarter as well as the first half of 2015, and remains the nation’s 31st busiest airport based on last year’s traffic, officials said Wednesday. The airport saw a 1.5 percent increase in passengers in the second quarter, to 3,336,133, compared with second quarter 2014. Passenger traffic dipped 1.2 percent in June, after increases in April of 3.3 percent and May of 2.6 percent compared with a year ago, Lambert officials said Wednesday. Lambert’s passenger traffic grew 2 percent in the first quarter.>> CLICK FOR MORE

KWAME to manage $5.7 million North St. Louis County firehouse construction projects (Construction Forum St. Louis, 7/21/15)

The Northeast Ambulance and Fire Protection District (NEAFPD) in St. Louis County has contracted Kwame Building Group, Inc. (KWAME) as project manager on construction of a new $5.7 million firehouse at 7100 Natural Bridge Road, Beverly Hills, Missouri. The architect is JEMA. >> CLICK FOR MORE

A.T. Still University’s Kirksville College of Osteopathic Medicine (ATSU-KCOM) announced today a $1.2 million, five-year grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). Grant funding will enhance primary care education and better prepare medical students to reduce health disparities and barriers to care for vulnerable populations, improve patient engagement, and become leaders in the Primary Care Workforce Competencies endorsed by the Patient-Centered Primary Care Collaborative >> CLICK FOR MORE

Advanced Particle Technology: Using Science to Clean Air (Techli, 7/21/15)

Applied Particle Technology is one of the newest and most promising startups coming out of the Washington University community. Conceived by Professor Pratim Biswas, and co-founded by PhD candidates and environmental and chemical engineers Jiaxi Fang and Tandeep S. Chadha, Applied Particle Technology is a new air purification system that provides cleaner air with less environmental impact.>> CLICK FOR MORE

Ameren Illinois says its customers are experiencing fewer and shorter power outages as a result of electric grid upgrades the company has implemented under the state’s Energy Infrastructure Modernization Act. These reliability improvements are saving its customers an estimated $48 million each year, the company said recently.>> CLICK FOR MORE